2021 has been the year that brought blockchain gaming to the forefront. After several frustrating years with a lack of traction, 2021 turned out to be the tipping point and we have seen staggering growth. However, the growth is not tapering but rather increasing. DappRadar’s 2021 Industry Report is further evidence that 2022 will be an incredible year for the industry.
DappRadar’s 2021 Industry Report Key Takeaways
Firstly, if you’re interested in blockchain gaming — and you’re here, so I presume you are to some degree — give DappRadar’s report a read. If you’re looking for some key facts, however, I will offer some of the most important takeaways.
- Gaming NFTs accounted for 22% of total NFT sales in Q3 2021 and will likely continue to increase its share
- NFT in-game trading volume exceeded $1 billion for the first time in November; in January it was under $1 million
- Daily Active Users (DUA) of GameFi dapps is up thousands of percent from Q1 to Q4
- WAX, BSC, Immutable, Ronin, and Hive among the notable networks in the space
- Venture Capitalists invested $80 million in blockchain gaming in 2020 and over $4 billion in 2021 so far
- Metaverse NFTs went parabolic in Q4 21 with a trading volume of 155% higher than Q1, Q2, and Q3 combined
- Metaverse tokens outperforming any other assets; $GALA up 31,552% and $SAND 14,872%
For more detail, read DappRadar’s report here.
Why You Should Be Excited for 2022
2021 has been significant — there’s no doubt about that — but it’s a warm-up act. The foundations have been laid and entire empires are about to rise up. If you’re not interested in gaming speculation, you only need look at the market and industry indicators on what’s to come, with the above key takeaways a slim selection.
If you want to look at the sort of games that are en route in a speculative manner, as we love to do, you have a veritable feast; so much so, I couldn’t possibly list them all. With the inclusion of beta testing, you have Mirandus, The Sandbox, Aurory, Cryowar, NiftyVille, Ember Sword, and so many more. That’s without mentioning expansions, major content patches, and roadmap markers hit by current titles. Our Blockchain Gaming Watch will have to become a weekly piece.
Then, of course, there are the companies in their various roles that are fervently building; Forte, Sorare, Dapper Labs, Animoca Brands, Ultra, etc. This is without mentioning the established game publishers actively working with blockchain now, such as Epic Games and Ubisoft.
2021 has been the year that blockchain gaming finally burst through the soil. But, if you look at the pace of our industry and how far we have come just from January to December 2021, you ought to be vibrating in your seat for what is to come in the next 12 months. At this point, it is a meme to say it, but I have no choice: we are so early.
